


Gypsy

by BriannaSterling



Category: The Resident (2018)
Genre: Conrad Hawkins - Freeform, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Whump, the resident - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-07
Updated: 2018-06-03
Packaged: 2019-03-28 06:17:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13898055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BriannaSterling/pseuds/BriannaSterling
Summary: An old flame appears at the hospital bringing back all kinds of problems for Conrad.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I am obsessed with this show and I am so disappointed that there are only a few fics out there right now. The ones I have read I adore, and if you guys see any, be sure to send them my way. 
> 
> This is my first shot at this fandom and we're only a few episodes in, so I doubt I have a good grasp on everyone's character. Also, I was feeling inspired last night so I pumped this out, not sure how far it'll go or if it'll even go anywhere. All I know is I want it to be whumpy and I just want someone to hold him. 
> 
> (Flashbacks are in Italics)

“Get moving Dr. Pravesh.” Devon heard the booming voice before Conrad even reached the nurse’s station.

“Just getting some files.” Devon said, waiving them around. Conrad ignored him, choosing to walk right past him. Devon knew by now that he had to follow, so he fell in step behind the cool and confident Conrad Hawkins. Devon wouldn’t admit it just yet, but he admired Conrad, he was annoying as hell sometimes, but he was brilliant and he stood up for what he believed in, even against the people that held his job in their hands.

“ER rounds today. Ready?” Conrad asked over his shoulder. Devon nodded and started looking through the patient files. The emergency room always made him nervous, but he’d never say so, at least not to Conrad. They walked past the nurse’s station where Nic was sitting and Conrad didn’t even look at her.

“Conrad, there’s something I need to tell you.” Nic called.

“Later, I’ve got patients.” Conrad said swiftly. Devon knew something was wrong, Conrad was angry with Nic, which was a shock. Devon didn’t think Nic had the ability to upset Conrad, she could set him on fire and he’d still grin at her, it must have been serious. Devon gave a dejected looking Nic a tight-lipped smile and he continued on behind Conrad.

When they entered the emergency room it was not a shock that everyone was rushing around and people were moving swiftly between rooms. The ER was always busy, and that was what made Devon nervous. Fast paced medicine wasn’t something he was interested in at all, yet here he was.

“Don’t you love this?” Conrad asked, looking back at Devon who frowned and shook his head.

“What are you talking about?” Devon asked.

“The chaos, don’t you love the chaos?” Conrad smirked, but before Devon could reply someone shouted from the back corner of the room.

“Little help over here!” the shout was followed by a sharp yell, this time angry.

“Get off me bitch!” Conrad didn’t hesitate, he rushed forward with Devon right behind him. They didn’t even get behind the curtain before it was ripped back and someone slammed into Conrad who slammed back into Devon. That someone was a patient, clad only in a gown. The man was huge, he was well over 6’4 and he was wielding a pair of scissors. Devon could tell just by the look in his eyes that he was on something and it was not going well.

“Call security!” A woman’s voice shouted, but Conrad had gained his bearings, he went for the man, he training kicking it, but it wasn’t enough to fight off a massive man fueled by drugs. The man grabbed Conrad around the neck and lifted him easily off the ground, the trip was short though, because in the next second, Conrad was slammed onto the linoleum floor. Devon watched in horror as Conrad’s head bounced off the hard floor like a basketball and he gasped as the air left his lungs. Devon couldn’t just stand and watch, he moved to step forward, but someone zipped past him, the only thing Devon saw was red hair as a woman, Devon did not recognize, launched herself onto the patient’s back. Devon was stunned, especially when he recognized the long white coat, whoever she was, she was a doctor. She wrapped her forearm around the big man’s throat and he let go of Conrad instantly to analyze his new threat. The woman was a distraction, that was all, she definitely wasn’t a fighter, because the man grabbed the arm that was wrapped around his throat and easily pulled her off, dropping her to the wayside. He growled and came back for Conrad who was still dazed but trying to sit up. It was too late though, secrutiy arrived and three guards slammed the patient to the ground while a frazzled nurse scrambled to push a sedative into his arm. Within seconds, the huge man was out cold. Devon regained his composure and hurried toward the resident. Conrad was sitting up and when Devon approached and offered his hand, Conrad took it quickly. Devon didn’t miss the way the man swayed as he stood and his brow crinkled in concern.

“Are you alright, you took a hard hit.” Devon said. Conrad just grinned and rubbed a hand slowly over the back of his head.

“I’m fine.” He said.

“You should let me look, at least run a few tests.” Devon said. Conrad gave him a look that said ‘stop talking’ so Devon ground his teeth instead.

“Good luck getting this one to seek medical treatment. The phrase ‘Doctors are the worst patients' was created because of him.” Devon looked up to find the person who spoke and was met with the brightest blue eyes he’d ever seen. The woman standing before him was gorgeous. Her big blue eyes were icy in color and set on a face that was almost too pale. Freckles dusted her small, slightly upturned nose, and fell gently on her rounded cheeks. Her pink lips were full and shaped like a cupid’s bow. Devon stared at her briefly, her long red hair fell in big waves to her shoulder blades. He couldn’t tell if the color was natural or not, but it was definitely a beautiful shade. She was short, much shorter than she had appeared when she’d leapt onto the patient’s back. Devon guessed 5’2, could’ve been less. Devon was shocked, her slim frame was not one that could easily bring down someone of the patient’s size, but she had definitely tried.

“Stevie.” Conrad said slowly, as if he didn’t believe she was standing in front of him. Devon looked back and forth between the pair. Conrad’s expression was a mixture between confusion, pain, and happiness. While Stevie, Devon guessed that was her name, just grinned widely and crossed her arms.

“Let me look at you.” Stevie stepped forward and when her hands came up to Conrad’s neck, he didn’t move, in fact, Devon watched as Conrad looked down into her eyes and a slow grin tugged at his lips.

“I’m fine.” He said softly. Stevie smirked and nodded, running her fingers up the back of his scalp slowly. Conrad seemed to sink into her touch, enjoying the feel of her hands. Devon didn’t blame him, but he was interested to find out what kind of relationship Conrad had with Stevie, and why Devon had never seen her before.

“You’ve got a nice sized bump here, I’d really like to check you out.” Stevie said, pulling her hands back.

“I’d know if I had a concussion.” Conrad said.

“I’m sure you would.” She replied.

“What are you doing here Stevie?” Conrad asked carefully, his eyes scanning her face slowly. She shrugged and glanced at Devon.

“I’m guessing you’re his?” Stevie jerked her finger at Conrad and swiftly changed the subject.

“Devon, Devon Pravesh.” He stuck his hand out quickly.

“Stephanie Holt, Stevie is fine though.” She smiled and shook his hand.

“Is he treating you well?” Stevie asked.

“Can I speak to you for a minute?” Conrad said. He didn’t wait for a reply, he grasped Stevie’s wrist and pulled her toward one of the supply rooms.

“Go help Feldman.” Conrad barked at Devon as he disappeared. Devon frowned, Feldman was upstairs, which meant Devon had to leave the ER. As much as Devon wanted to hang around and find out what exactly was going on between Stevie and Conrad, he knew he had work to do, so he set off to find Dr. Feldman. His search took him past Nic who gave him an odd look.

“Where’s Conrad?” she asked swiftly.

“Talking to some doctor downstairs. Stevie Holt.” Devon shrugged and continued to walk, but the look on Nic’s face made him stop. She looked like she was going to be sick.

“Stevie Holt? You’re sure?” Nic asked slowly.

“Pretty positive. It’s a unique name.” Devon shrugged. Nic glanced around her keyboard and then cleared her throat before she stood.

“I thought I’d get to him before he saw her.” Nic said.

“Is there something I should know?” Devon asked. Nic looked up at him and pursed her lips before she crossed her arms.

“They met in Afghanistan, he worked for her.” Nic said. Devon nodded, there had to be more, so he waited. Nic frowned and moved her mouth around, Devon could tell that she wasn’t sure she wanted to say the next part.

“She’s the only person he’s ever been completely honest and open with, then she married someone else and broke him.” Nic met Devon’s gaze and then she spun around and walked off. Devon watched her walk away, unable to move. Conrad had been open and honest with someone, Devon couldn’t imagine that ever happening.

* * *

 

Stevie stepped into the supply room, mostly pushed by Conrad who was close behind her. He closed the door and his intense brown gaze bore into her.

“How are you here?” he asked. Stevie moved to answer, but Conrad’s eyes closed tight and he pressed the heel of his hand into his temple. Her reply disappeared and she took a step toward him, unable to stop herself. The feelings she’d had for Conrad Hawkins would never go away, she just needed him to be alright, she’d always needed that.

“You’re hurt.” Her hands came back up, but this time Conrad stepped away from her.

“Stop, stop touching me.” He grumbled, forcing his eyes open.

“You always were cranky when you were hurt.” Stevie said.

“I’m fine. Jesus, just tell me why the fuck you’re here?” he growled. Stevie pursed her lips and nodded. She should have told him she was coming, blindsiding him was not fair.

“I sent my résumé out to a few hospitals. Chastain offered me the head of emergency medicine position. I took it.” She shrugged.

“Get tired of New York?” he asked, crossing his arms.

“Bad memories.” Stevie gave him a small smile, hoping to lighten the mood.

“I can’t imagine it was easy to convince Adam to move.” Conrad said. Stevie pursed her lips and looked down at the ground.

“Adam died last year. Car accident.” Stevie tried to clear her throat as a lump filled it. The look Conrad gave her was one full of remorse, guilt, and sympathy.

“Oh…damn, Stevie I’m so sorry.” He stumbled to get the words out as quickly as possible.

“No, no it’s fine, it’s not like you killed him.” Stevie let a small laugh bubble out, the only way she could deal with it was to laugh. Adam would have wanted her to laugh. Conrad looked at her, his classic smirk appearing, wrinkling the corners of his eyes.

“Why’d you choose to come here?” he asked, slowly scanning her face.

“Good job, great pay, friendly face.” She said. Conrad's grin widened and shook his head, the movement caused his eyes to close again briefly and Stevie’s worry spiked.

“Conrad please, please let me check you out.”

“Go ahead.” He said softly, his eyes still closed.

“I can’t do it properly in here.” Stevie shook her head.

“Try.” He mumbled and finally opened his eyes. Stevie sighed and grabbed her pen light, she stepped forward and put her hand gently on his cheek, pulling his upper lid further open to shine the light in. He winced and closed his eyes tightly against the invading light.

“Yeah, you’re fine.” She said sarcastically.

“It’s just a mild concussion. I can work through it.” He nodded. Stevie’s palm was still resting on his cheek so she stroked her thumb over the bone there.

“Do you remember when you told me that down time was for serious wounds?” Stevie asked. Conrad chuckled and then gave a brisk nod.

“You told me that when you had three broken ribs and a hip to navel laceration that required stitches.”

“You weren’t happy with me.” Conrad said leaning into her touch.

“Because you were being stubborn and mean.”

* * *

 

_Stevie grabbed Conrad’s shoulder and shoved him back down onto the bed, a groan of pain left his parted lips as he panted softly._

_“Be still, you’ll make it worse.” She said sharply, keeping a firm grip on his shoulder._

_“I need to find Jude.” Conrad growled and tried to move again. This time though, his movement pulled his injury and he cried out, arching into Stevie’s palm._

_“Ok, ok enough Conrad hold still, Jude is fine. He’s in this next room, you’re worse off, so please, hold still and let me clean this before it gets infected._

_“Get off me Stevie.” He tried to push her hand away, but she held firm._

_“I need some morphine over here!” Stevie shouted over her shoulder._

_“Stephanie!” Conrad jerked beneath her, she could tell he was angry, but now she was angry, why was he so stubborn?_

_“I said hold still!” She shouted back, glaring down at him. Conrad froze and his dark eyes met hers. He was scared, not of her, of what had happened to his friends._

_“They’re alright Conrad, I swear. Have I ever lied to you?” she asked gently. She took her hand from his shoulder and put it on his cheek, caressing it gently. He leaned into her touch and closed his eyes, his breath was not even close to evened out and she needed to close his still bleeding wound, but she needed to comfort him more._

_“No.” he replied, dropping his head back onto the bed, breathing hard puffs through his nose as his eyes clenched shut._

_“I need to put pressure back on this, stick with me alright?” she grabbed the gauze she’d been holding prior to Conrad’s struggle and she pressed it back over his wound. His moan was almost unbearable and Stevie leaned forward, dropping a small kiss onto his sweaty forehead. Conrad’s small smile tugged the edges of his lips up, but his eyes remained closed. He was tired and in pain._

_“Don’t keep those brown eyes closed too long.” She whispered. A nurse arrived with the shot of morphine and Conrad’s eyes fluttered open._

_“Yes ma’am” he said quietly. The nurse gave him the shot and laid out the stitching kit for Stevie. Within seconds his body relaxed and his frown lines disappeared._

_“There we go.” Stevie smiled and rubbed her free hand over his forehead, brushing his hair back._

_“My brilliant, tough, kind man.” Stevie whispered. Conrad grinned up at her, his free hand fluttering over his busted ribs._

_“Yours huh?” he asked quietly. Stevie nodded and dropped a small kiss onto his lips._

_“Mine.” She replied._

* * *

 

“You should have been used to it.” He said. He turned his head away from her, but Stevie couldn’t let him go. It wasn’t fair, she couldn’t have him, she wasn’t over Adam, she wasn’t ready to move on, but she wanted Conrad so bad, she needed him.

“I came here for you.” Stevie said rapidly. Conrad stopped short and peered back at her.

“What?” he asked, his brow furrowing.

“I didn’t know what else to do. I need you Conrad. You know me, you’re the only one who knows me.” Stevie stepped toward him and Conrad sighed as her hands slipped up his chest.

“Adam knew you.” He said.

“Not like you.” She said. Conrad dropped his gaze and then slowly leaned his forehead against hers.

“Don’t say things like that, Adam knew you just as well as I do.”

“And he’s gone now. There’s only you.”

“You’re not over him are you?” Conrad asked, lifting his head to look over hers as she stared at his chest.

“No.” she replied softly. She felt tears gather in her eyes, so she slipped her hands around his sides. Conrad pulled her into his chest and wrapped his arms around her back.

“I understand.” He said, pressing his lips into her hair. He breathed in and Stevie knew he was remembering their time together.

“I just need some peace. Just a night of peace.” She said, turning her head into him to take in his scent. He still smelled faintly of bleach, but there was also the Conrad smell, black tea and a little bit of eucalyptus.

“We both know it won’t be just one night.” He said.

“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” Stevie said. Conrad sighed again, but this time it was in defeat. He leaned back a little and pressed a gentle kiss to Stevie’s forehead. Before he could speak, a loud knock on the door pulled them apart.    


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so happy that you guys enjoyed the first chapter. I'm not entirely sure where this is going, I'm just following the ideas in my head, we'll see where they go. Enjoy!

Conrad sat at the bar, a cold beer in his hand. He was exhausted, the work he was used to, but doing the work with a concussion was not something he’d grown accustomed to.

“This bar is a little shady.” Devon said, sitting down next to him. Conrad smirked and nodded toward the back.

“Don’t let Laura here you say that.” Conrad said before he winked at Laura, the owner. She was an older woman that loved to flirt, Conrad indulged her often.

“I’m sorry again for interrupting your conversation.” Devon grimaced and Conrad just nodded. Even the slight movement made his head throb harder and he closed his eyes for a moment, tipping his head forward to try and relieve some of the pain.

“Stop apologizing, it’s fine. We were done.” He said. He wasn’t necessarily lying. As much as he wanted to keep talking with Stevie, his patients were more important. Stevie had patients too, which meant he hadn’t seen her since their closet encounter, and he definitely didn’t know how to reach her. Conrad sighed and ran a hand down the back of his head, wincing when he encountered the bump.

“So what’s up, who is she?” Devon asked suddenly, pulling Conrad’s attention to Devon’s intrigued expression.

“An old friend.” Conrad answered.

“Looked like more than that.” Devon grinned. As much as Conrad admired the kid’s willingness to ask tough questions, he didn’t have the energy to explain or the want. Stevie was an enigma, she’d always pushed and confused Conrad, but she also fascinated him. She was brilliant, kind, strong, and her moral compass pointed in the same direction as Conrad’s, she wasn’t nearly as reckless as him though. Which was why she’d chosen Adam over him.

“She’s married.” Conrad replied to Devon’s prying.

“Oh, well…” Devon paused and looked up toward the door. Conrad knew before he turned, but when he did, his stomach clenched in delight. Seeing her for the second time was worse than the first, because now she wasn’t wearing scrubs and a white coat, now she was wearing a pair of tight jeans and a midriff bearing tank-top. Conrad was reminded suddenly of the fact that he had once been privileged enough to see her without anything on.

“Why?” Conrad mumbled under his breath. He couldn’t be around her, he didn’t need to be around her. She wanted something from him that he couldn’t give without risking his own happiness. Conrad sensed that it was too late though, all she had to do was ask, and he’d fold like a wet paper bag. He couldn’t deny her, he’d never been able to. She’d ripped his heart out and stomped on it, but even that indiscretion was not enough to drive Conrad away from her forever. She could do it again, and as much as Conrad hated himself for it, he’d still adore her. The only way he could keep his head would be to stay away, but again, it was too late, Devon waved at her, catching her attention, and then she was walking toward them.

“Devon, nice to see you again.” She said. Her eyes only stayed on Devon for a brief second and then she was looking at Conrad, her eyes scanning him in a way only a doctor would.

“How are you feeling?” she asked. Conrad opened his mouth to say he was fine, but Devon interrupted.

“Tired, irritable, bad headache.” He rattled off. Conrad glared at him and then shifted his eyes back to Stevie.

“I am fine, let it go.” He said angrily. Stevie glanced at Devon who shrugged.

“I’m just going to go over…here.” Devon pointed. Conrad opened his mouth to stop him, if Devon left, then he’d be alone with Stevie, but when Stevie’s hand landed on Conrad's arm, his mouth snapped shut.

“I’ll have what he’s having.” She said to the bartender, using Conrad’s arm to pull herself up onto the stool next to him as Devon walked away. The man behind the bar handed her a beer and she took a long drink.

“How was work?” she asked.

“You don’t have to do that.” He said.

“What am I doing Conrad?”

“Trying to make small talk, ignoring why you’re really here.” He said, looking straight ahead. If he looked in her eyes it would be over.

“I told you why I’m here.”

“Not here in Atlanta, here in this bar.” Conrad’s head pounded, the pressure was almost unbearable.

“Conrad-”

“You’re not here because you want a relationship, you’re here because you’re lonely.”

“Isn’t that why you’re here? I don’t see Nic anywhere.” Stevie said. Conrad felt his anger spike and his head throbbed in rhythm with his heart.

“I just need to go home.” Conrad shook his head and lifted his beer bottle, placing to cool glass against his temple, he felt some relief, but not nearly enough.

“Good, let’s go then.” Stevie chuckled and finished her beer. Conrad sighed and couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled over.

“There he is, the Conrad I know. The one that likes a good joke.” Stevie smiled and Conrad saw her flip her hair out of the corner of his eye. His stomach tightened again.

“Dance with me?” she asked, dropping her hand onto his arm again. Conrad looked down at her hand and frowned.

“I don’t dance.”

“Oh you liar. I distinctly remember dancing with you in the rec center after a successful surgery. You and Jude were drunk before I even got there.” She peered around the room.

“You’re not embarrassed to dance in front of your colleagues, are you?” she asked.

“That’s not it.”

“Maybe if I play Gypsy you’ll dance.” She grinned, Conrad smiled at that.

“I do like that song.” He replied.

“I know. It’s the first song we danced to.”

“Only because you forced me.” Conrad said.

“I couldn’t help it! It's a Fleetwood Mac song! My mother named me Stephanie and purposefully called me Stevie because her favorite person in the entire world was Stevie Nicks.”

“Your dad hated it.”

“That he did.” Stevie rubbed her hand over Conrad's arm and squeezed.

“Have you heard from your dad?” she asked. Conrad winced internally at the question.

“If you’re trying to put me in a bad mood that’s a good way to do it.”

“You’re already in a bad mood. Might as well ask some questions I want answers to while you’re pissy rather than make you mad later.” She shrugged.

“I talked to him a few days ago.” Conrad said. Stevie nodded and squeezed his arm again.

“So, that dance then?” she asked. Conrad chuckled, that was something he loved about her. She turned on a dime, he never knew what would come out of her mouth, and he knew anytime he spoke with her they’d talk about eight different things. Not only that, but she didn’t linger, she didn’t force him to talk about things he didn’t want to talk about. His conversations about his parents and childhood had always come natural with her, she let him open up on his own time.

“Conrad, come on.” She tugged at his arm and he couldn’t deny her any longer. He went with her to the dance floor, and when she spun around and slipped her hands up and around his neck, he closed his eyes.

“Why won’t you look at me?” she asked. Conrad dropped his forehead against hers and moved her slowly back and forth, not answering her question. Stevie sighed and sank her fingers into his hair while her other hand slipped down over his shoulders and pressed into his skin. Her fingers digging into him just reminded him too much of all the nights they’d shared and he didn’t want to stop thinking about that, not right now. Not when it was giving him so much relief. Relief from thinking about his dad, about Nic, about all the shit at the hospital. She’d always been good at distracting him, and she’d done it for so long, now here she was asking him to do the same thing for her, and he was denying her. Conrad frowned and opened his eyes, looking down at her finally. Her big blue eyes searched his and then she smiled.

“Do you remember what you used to call me?” she asked, stroking her hand slowly down his neck. Conrad chuckled and pulled her closer, turning her around in a circle.

“Bambi.” He said. Stevie laughed and nodded, putting her forehead against his chest for a moment before she looked back up at him.

“Because of your big doe eyes.” He said, pinching her side gently. Stevie huffed and shoved him lightly.

“My eyes are not that big.”

“No, no they aren’t.” Conrad smiled as she stilled against him.

“They’re beautiful.” He said after a small pause. Stevie looked up at him and he saw something there that he hadn’t seen since Afghanistan. She felt guilty.

“I’m sorry for doing this to you.” She said softly. Conrad’s brow wrinkled in confusion.

“Doing what?”

“Making you feel like you owe me something. Like you have to be there for me. You don’t Conrad, you don’t have to do anything for me. You don’t owe me anything.” She said. Conrad felt his chest tighten this time. He owed her so much, but he wasn’t going to start listing it out. All he knew was that she needed him, and despite their issues, he was going to be there for her because she was his friend, she was someone he loved and cared about. He wouldn’t dare let her suffer alone.

“I know.” Conrad lifted his hand and cupped her cheek, stroking his thumb over it slowly. Her skin was just as soft as he remembered and he nodded, he’d made up his mind. He wasn’t going to let her do it alone. He slipped his hand down to link his fingers through hers, but before he could lead her away from the floor and toward the door, a hand landed on his shoulder and squeezed, hard.

“Mind if I cut in?” the man behind Conrad was trouble, plain and simple. Conrad had seen him in the bar on several occasions and he’d always made it his mission to cause trouble. Why the man hadn’t been banned yet was beyond him. The man was tall and wide, and always wore some kind of shirt with the sleeves ripped off, dirty jeans, and work boots. In Conrad’s experience, he was always drunk.

“I’m good big guy, thanks though.” Stevie gave him her best smile and nodded. Normally it would have worked, but the man didn’t like being turned down. He frowned and his mouth twisted into some kind of aggravated sneer. Conrad was not in the mood to deal with the drunk man, and he knew Stevie would try her best to smooth over any kind of rough situation, so to save them both some time, Conrad squeezed her hand and jerked his head toward the door.

“Let’s go.” He said. Stevie nodded and Conrad moved to step around the man, however, he didn’t seem to want them to go, because he put his meat paw on the middle of Conrad’s chest and stopped them.

“Nah, I want to dance with the lady.” He said, grinning past Conrad at Stevie.

“The lady doesn’t want to dance with you. Now if you’ll excuse us.” Conrad said, trying his best to maintain his composure. Stevie put her hand on his bicep, holding onto him tightly, she knew Conrad, and she knew that he was almost at his limit for dealing with people’s bullshit. The big man chuckled and shook his head. Conrad noticed the man’s buddies eyeing them, he wasn’t scared, not by any means, but three against one meant he’d end up with some kind of hurt, and he didn’t need that, not right now.

“Look, I don’t want to dance with you, now please move, I’m asking nicely. There are plenty of women here, ask one of them.” Stevie waved her hand around to show the man all his options.

“Oh come on honey, you don’t want to go home with this little shit, come with me, I know what I’m doing.” The man reached for Stevie and his hand almost wrapped around her arm, but Conrad knocked it away swiftly. It definitely wasn’t the right move, but he was angry and he was done. The man swung at him, Conrad expected it so he ducked. Stevie released Conrad and took a big step back, she knew better than to get involved. Conrad swung upward and his fist connected with the man’s chin. He stumbled back away from Conrad, but his friends were right there, the first one’s fist slammed into Conrad’s ribs, pain flared and stole Conrad’s breath, but he fought through it and blocked a fist coming toward his face. Conrad grabbed the hand and he sent an elbow into the man’s nose. Another fist hit his ribcage and Conrad gasped as white-hot pain took his breath and blurred his vision. Something broke, which was bad, because moving was going to hurt. Conrad needed to get out of this fast, because the more he fought, the more his head throbbed, and ribs screamed. One was down with a busted nose, he wasn’t getting back up, that left two. Conrad looked up in time to see one coming from each side, he swung out and hit the bigger one, his fist hit the man just right and it was lights out, unfortunately that left Conrad open to his side. The man who’d first asked to cut in was the only one left. He wrapped his arms around Conrad’s waist and lifted him easily, slamming Conrad back onto the pool table. Conrad’s vision blurred and he was left gasping as pain tore through him, his ribs screamed in agony and his already sore head pounded with new found pain. Had he not already been suffering from a concussion, he would have jumped right back up, despite his ribs, but he was dazed, and hurting.

“Get off!” Conrad heard Stevie’s shout and he looked up. Through bleary eyes he could see the man holding Stevie’s arm, it was clear that Stevie had intervened. She balled her fist up and Conrad knew she was seconds from punching the man. He didn’t want that, if she hit him and didn’t knock him out then he’d hit her back, and Conrad couldn’t let that happen. The man was close enough, so Conrad shoved the pain down and lifted his feet, he kicked out as hard as he could, and his feet hit the man’s chest. The man toppled over, hitting a table on the way down, and knocking himself out. He released Stevie on his way down and Conrad sighed with relief before he fell backward on the table, trying to catch the breath that had been knocked out of him.

“Ok come on, up you go, let’s get out of here. Police are on the way.” Stevie grabbed Conrad's arm and pulled him upward. He ground his teeth to keep from crying out as he was righted, and he closed his eyes against the pain.

“Police?” he asked. Stevie pulled his arm around her shoulders and tugged him up off the table until his feet were on the ground. He swayed but stayed on his feet as Stevie drug him toward the door.

“Don’t worry darling, I’ll handle the cops.” Laura called. Conrad looked up at Laura who waved them away, he gave her the best wink he could manage through a grimace before he was swiftly pulled away.

“Jesus.” Stevie sighed next to him.  
“He started it.” Conrad hissed as Stevie carefully leaned him back against the black jeep.

“I know.” She opened the door and Conrad shook her off when she reached for him.

“I’ve got it, it’s fine.” Conrad grabbed the door and pushed himself up into the vehicle, disguising his wince with a fake cough. Stevie slammed the door as sirens filled the night air.

“Shit.” She jumped behind the wheel and they threw up rocks as she sped out of bar parking lot in the opposite direction of the sounds.

“My place is that way.” He pointed.

“We’re not going to your place.” She said, glancing over at him. Conrad saw the concern in her eyes before she looked back toward the road. He sank down into the seat, his head was pounding much like every other part of his body, but now he felt guilty on top of it.

“Listen-” he started.

“It’s not your fault Conrad. I’m just worried.”

“No need.” He waved her off, but even that small motion hurt his ribs and he grimaced.

“You took some hard hits, you’re bleeding.” She gestured and shook her head.

“I’ve had worse.” He smirked. Stevie chuckled and gripped the steering wheel.

“I know you have, that doesn’t mean I have to be happy about it.”

“I just need a nap.” He smirked.


	3. Chapter 3

“Alright, come on.” Stevie opened the front door and flipped the entry lights on so that Conrad could make his way inside. He reached the living area and glanced back at her while she locked the door.

“Just sit on the couch, I’ll get some Band-Aids.” She chuckled. Conrad huffed out a laugh and limped toward the couch while Stevie ducked into the hallway bathroom and grabbed a go bag she kept just in case. When she reached the couch, Conrad was sitting, legs splayed open, head tipped back over the couch, and hand pressed firmly and protectively against his side.

“Ok, let me have this.” Stevie leaned down and gently tugged at the hem of Conrad’s shirt. Conrad looked up at her and raised an eyebrow.

“That was quick.” He said with a smirk.

“Stop it.” Stevie chuckled and leaned down to pull his good side out of the shirt. She was directly in front of his face while she carefully worked the shirt over his head, and when she felt his teeth gently nip at her throat, she wasn’t the least bit surprised. She’d been asking for this after all, but this was also his way of easing her worry, pulling her focus away from him.

“Behave.” She pulled her head back and narrowed her eyes down at him. His grin was infectious and she found herself smiling back at him before shifting her focus to carefully pull his shirt off his opposite arm. He grimaced but didn’t make a noise. Stevie sat down on the coffee table in front of him and opened her bag.

“Give me your hand.” She held her palm out and grabbed some antiseptic and gauze from her bag. Conrad dropped his hand into hers and she looked at his knuckles, they were bloody and bruised. Stevie winced internally.

“How about I just shower and clean up myself? Save us both some time.” Conrad asked. Stevie frowned up at him and then looked him over. He was still muscled and toned from head to toe, his chest and abdomen were taunt with hard muscle, and while it flustered Stevie to see him like that again, it didn’t stop her eyes from zeroing in on the purple and blue bruises forming over his ribcage. She sat his hand down along with her supplies and she leaned forward.

“Jesus Conrad.” She said under her breath. She reached out and brushed her fingers over the battered skin.

“It looks worse than it feels.” He said.

“Anything broken?” She asked, staring at the bruises.

“Maybe one or two.” He hissed as she pressed a little too enthusiastically and he caught her wrist.

“Easy darling.” He chuckled softly to not irritate his side further. Stevie closed her eyes, she desperately missed the sound of his voice and his pet names for her. She also missed how his skin felt against hers.

“Let me shower, put your bag up, no need for Band-Aids.” He said, wincing as he pulled himself forward, using her wrist to help. She knew she couldn’t fight him. Plus, a shower would probably make him feel better than her poking and prodding at him.

“Ok. Use my bathroom, towels are in the closet. Hot water is on your left.” She said. He stood, this time without her help and Stevie followed him up.

“I’ll take care of me.” He pointed at his chest, a grin spreading across his face, and then he slipped his hand up her neck to cup her cheek.

“Then I’ll take care of you.” He dropped a kiss on her forehead and slipped around her, going into her bedroom and straight to the shower. Stevie sighed and grabbed his bloody shirt, she tossed it onto the counter and then grabbed his pants from her bedroom floor. It only took her a second to treat the blood stains and toss his clothes into the washing machine. She caught herself when she came out of the laundry room. Her heart seized as sadness overwhelmed her. Cleaning up after Conrad and treating his clothes for stains reminded her so much of Adam. She didn’t realize how much she would miss the day to day things until she was no longer doing them. After a few moments, she sighed and pushed off the wall. She went into the kitchen and grabbed a couple of low dose pain pills and a bottle of water before carrying them into the bedroom and sitting them on the bedside table. The shower turned off as Stevie shed her clothes and tugged on a black silk nightdress. It wasn’t meant to seduce, it was comfortable, but when Conrad came out of the bathroom, his eyes fell on her and raked her from head to toe. She did the same to him though, the towel slung low around his hips was not helping her focus.

“I brought you some medicine and water.” She pointed. Conrad nodded and reluctantly pulled his eyes from Stevie to seek out the medicine. As much as Stevie wanted to have sex with Conrad, she wanted him to rest more, but most of all, she found herself aching to take care of him. She was aching to ease his pain and relax him. Stevie chuckled to herself, realizing that all of that was ingrained in her. She’d been a spouse for a long time, and part of that meant taking care of your significant other. She wanted to be held and taken care of, but she wanted to do that for someone else more. So, she moved slowly across the room and laid her hands on Conrad’s back. He finished the water and sat it down on the table, glancing back at her. Stevie leaned forward and pressed her lips to the first letter of his tattoo, and then she slowly began to trace the letters with her lips, tongue, and teeth. Conrad leaned back into her as his hands came back, his palms landed on her hips and he dug his fingers into her back, holding her closer to him. Stevie slipped her hands around his sides and down his front, being careful of his wounds, she gently scraped her fingernails over his abdomen.

“This tattoo is new.” She whispered as she nipped the ‘H’. Conrad made a satisfied noise in his throat and rubbed one of his hands slowly down her bottom.

“Not that new.” He replied. Stevie nodded, she realized it had been quite a while since she’d seen him naked.

“Anything else I should know about?” Stevie asked. She finished tracing the letters and she slipped her hands beneath the edge of the towel, tugging it slowly.

“Like what?” he asked. Stevie removed her hands and swiftly pulled her gown off, she was bare underneath, so when she returned to her former position, her bare body met his back and Conrad hissed, sucking air gently between his teeth. It wasn’t painful, it was blissful.

“Like new piercings?” she asked, rubbing her hands slowly back up his pecs. Conrad chuckled and shook his head.

“No, nothing like that.” He said. Stevie smiled and moved around his side as she stripped the towel from his hips. He didn’t flinch, he’d never been ashamed, only confident. Stevie felt nothing but confidence as he looked her over, his eyes were always full of praise and worship, never any judgment or shame. He took in every inch of her and then he reached out and ran his fingertips along her lower belly, just beneath her belly button, tracing the small white scar. Stevie put her hand over his, stopping its movement.

“Do you remember this?” she asked. Conrad’s eyes shot up to hers and the pain that had been there that day, was still there, years later.

“Man came in, he was hurt, MP’s were supposed to check him, didn’t do it thoroughly, almost lost you.” Conrad said. Stevie pursed her lips and pushed his hand up to cup one of her breasts. His warm, rough palm, took her breath away, and it seemed to do the same to him.

“Conrad…” Stevie pulled her hair to one side and stared at him.

“Yes?”

“Just kiss me…please.” Conrad chuckled and then with a brief nod of his head he came toward her.

Stevie didn’t move, she waited while one of his hands came up and cupped her cheek, his thumb pressed into her chin and titled her head up toward his. Stevie watched his eyes move over her face, taking in every detail of her. His other hand slid down over her hip and came to rest on her lower back. He gave a small tug and Stevie went willingly, moving closer to him. A familiar ache spread rapidly through her body, lighting her up like electricity pulsing through her veins. Conrad’s lips touched hers, briefly, a small brush of lips before he moved to her jaw, his lips trailed across her cheek, down her jaw and toward her neck. Stevie titled her head back, putting some weight into the hand that rested on her back, giving him access to her throat. His teeth skirted across her throat and Stevie made a small noise of satisfaction. Her body was thrumming and each time his lips touched a new place she knew it was her new favorite spot to be kissed. Conrad moved back up her throat and his teeth scratched over the edge of her jaw close to her ear. He took a breath and let it out, blowing air across her ear and Stevie thought she was going to drop. Her whole body tingled and her knees wobbled. Conrad’s grip on her back tightened and pressed her harder into his chest. Finally, his lips met hers and Stevie’s hand found the back of his neck, holding him close while his mouth moved gently over hers. He pulled back briefly and Stevie found the will to break away. She took a few steps back and moved toward the bed.

“My back or yours?” she asked, a grin on her face as she took a few steps backward. Conrad used his thumb to wipe the corners of his lips while his eyes stayed glued to Stevie.

“Whatever you want.” he said, standing his ground.

Stevie paused at the edge of the bed and the cool air blew across her breasts, causing her nipples to pucker involuntarily. Stevie saw Conrad’s eyes darken with desire and he took a few steps toward her, she reached out and touched him slowly. Stevie memorized him with her hands and eyes, moving both over his chest, down his sides, across his stomach, and past his hips. She felt Conrad’s hands close over her shoulders and he pulled her close again. Their lips met and this time they didn’t stop. He pressed into her, deepening the kiss and the electricity was there instantly. Stevie’s body was thrumming again, the way it used to when she and Conrad were together. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he hauled her up, his hands splaying across her bottom to hold her while she wrapped her legs around his hips. His lips left hers and kissed a fiery trail down her throat and over her collarbone. Stevie’s head went back of its own free will and she moaned when Conrad’s lips closed over one of her collarbones and sucked hard, his teeth scraping her sensitive skin. When her back met the bed, she had expected it and it half surprised her. His hand moved down over her bottom, pressing her hips into him and then he brushed down her thigh, hooking his fingers at the back of her knee and pulling her legs up and open. Stevie’s feet pressed into the mattress and she spread her thighs so that his hips fell between her open legs. She could feel him there on her thigh, hard and hot. His hand left her knee and skimmed over her body. Stevie decided that she loved his hands best of all. He had beautiful long fingers that rubbed and touched her in all the right places. Those fingers danced down her collar bone, gently brushed across her nipples and moved slowly over her stomach. Small bumps rose all over Stevie’s skin when his lithe fingers brushed the skin right above the junction of her thighs. Her stomach was in knots that were so intense she wanted to burst. When his body suddenly moved down and away from her, confusion and concern filled her bubbly brain. The buzz of pleasure returned though when his mouth covered one of her nipples. Stevie’s surprise was evident because a sharp moan escaped her mouth without her consent and she arched upward into him, pressing her breasts closer to his face. His hand landed on her ribcage, stilling her quick actions while he moved his mouth over her chest. Stevie let her head fall back onto the covers, she wanted nothing more than to writhe beneath him because she was so pent up, but his firm hands kept her still, causing small grunts of irritation to come out of her mouth in between her quiet moans of pleasure. His mouth left her breasts and moved down over her stomach, lower and lower until his fingers were curling under her knees to push her legs further apart. Stevie pushed her heels into the bed and lifted her bottom in frustration. He loved to tease her, always had, that was one thing she’d forgotten about him. Stevie was looking up at the ceiling when Conrad’s lips landed on her inner thigh, causing her to jerk in surprise and lift her head up to look down at him. She watched him in amazement. His eyes were open and his hands slid slowly around her thighs, gripping them firmly. He dropped slow, sweet kisses on the insides of both her thighs, every few seconds his teeth would join and he’d slowly scrape them across her skin causing her own teeth to sink painfully into her bottom lip. When his lips moved dangerously close to her center, she arched away from him quickly.

“Conrad.” She said his name breathlessly and let her head fall back on the bed, bring her hands up to cover her face.

“What? What’s wrong?” he asked quietly. She felt him move up her body until he was looking down at her.

“No one’s done that except…” She trailed off. Stevie felt her face turning red under her hands. She’d only ever had sex with two people, Conrad and Adam. When she and Conrad had been together, they’d never seemed to have time for it. He’d wanted to but being in Afghanistan meant quick and quiet. Adam was the only person that had ever been there, and it had made her nervous then with her husband, now she was just utterly ashamed. Conrad was silent for a minute and Stevie was wondering what he was thinking. His hands carefully tugged hers down off of her face and his warm brown eyes met hers.

“We won’t do anything you’re not comfortable with. You say stop, that’s it, no questions asked.” He said in all seriousness. Stevie pursed her lips and then dropped her head back again, embarrassment reddening her face.

“I don’t want to do something wrong.” She voiced her concerns and for the first time in a long time, her guard was down and she saw that Conrad knew that. He didn’t laugh at her or make fun of her, his just shook his head and leaned down, pressing a small kiss to her forehead.

“Your job is to lie here and enjoy.” He said, a grin coming to his face. Stevie returned his smile, as embarrassed as she was, she trusted him, she trusted him with everything.

“Yes.” She said softly.

“You’re sure?” he asked. He knew her comfort was what mattered, he cared little for his needs, always had.

“I’m positive.” She replied. Conrad nodded and when he slid back down her body she returned her eyes to the ceiling and waited. She tried her hardest to be still, her whole-body tense, just waiting. Conrad’s mouth touched the inside of her leg and she opened her mouth, the knots in her stomach returning full force. He kissed, nibbled, and licked his way to her center and when his hands parted her and his mouth began to devour her, she became a writhing panting mess. Nothing had ever felt so great and for a moment she decided that his mouth was her favorite part of him. Stevie was torn between wanting to look down at his head as he moved between her open thighs and pushing her head back into the mattress while she moaned. She felt something building inside of her and she knew exactly what it was, but she’d never expected it to happen while someone was doing what Conrad was doing. It had never happened with Adam, and that concerned her. How would she feel that Conrad was doing something to her that her husband could not? Before she could concern herself with it too much, her stomach bottomed out and everything hit her at once with such a force that she couldn’t keep her mouth shut.

“Ahhhh” Stevie made a strangled noise and her hips came up off the mattress, her body shook and noises she never knew she could make, fell from her lips. Stevie was still in the throws of what Conrad’s mouth had done when she briefly felt coldness as he moved away, he was back quickly though, his whole body covering hers. Stevie peeled her eyes open as his face appeared over hers, he was holding himself up off of her while she tried to catch her breath.

“Conrad that was…” Stevie shook her head, unable to form the appropriate words for what that was. She ran her hands down his chest and over his hips.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it.” He grinned. When she felt him pressed against her thigh the knots returned to her stomach and she grinned playfully. Conrad leaned down and kissed her deeply, covering her mouth with his. Stevie slipped her tongue into his mouth and then back out, her hand slid down between their bodies and she wrapped her fingers around his length. His sharp intake of breath made Stevie smile against his mouth and she carefully guided him to her entrance. Once he was inside of her, every rational and reasonable thought flew right out of her ears and her fully functioning brain was replaced with jelly, all wiggly and happy. One of his hands stayed planted in the bed and the other one slipped down her back, lifting her hips to meet his. Stevie wrapped herself around him, one of her arms slung tightly around his neck while she pressed kisses and bites into his shoulder. Her other hand was pressed firmly to his back, her nails digging in every time he moved.

“Conrad.” Stevie panted his name in his ear before she continued to kiss his shoulder and neck. Her legs came up and she hooked her ankles around his back, allowing him to push deeper. Stevie cried out and Conrad grunted, his head pressing down into her shoulder. Stevie felt the building again and it was as if he could sense it. He sank his hand between their bodies and rubbed his thumb roughly into the sensitive nub his tongue had been on moments earlier. Stevie gasped and pressed her face into his neck, clenching her lower muscles as pleasure pulsed through her. It only took seconds for her to explode around him. Her moans were loud and frantic as her orgasm tore through her. Conrad’s lips captured hers and after a few quick thrusts, he followed behind her, gasping against her cheek. Stevie pushed her hands up his back and rubbed his warm skin that was just beginning to bead with sweat. Conrad put more of his weight on her and pressed slow languid kisses to her throat. They lay together like that for a few moments, tangled up with one another, just enjoying the feel of each other. It had been so long and for the first time in over a year, she felt relief. Her hands running over his skin, each of them dropping light kisses on the other. After a few minutes, they untangled from each other and found a better position in bed. Conrad rolled onto his side and pulled Stevie back against his chest. She was too tired and to satisfied to put up any kind of fight, not that she would.

“Thank you.” She said softly. Conrad sank his hand into her hair and he rubbed her scalp gently and slowly.

“I mean, I obviously suffered a lot.” He shrugged. Stevie snorted and nudged him lightly.

“How do you feel?” she asked. Still thinking about his injuries. Conrad sighed and ran his other hand down her arm, wrapping around her stomach to hold her.

“I feel wonderful.” He replied. Stevie rolled her eyes but leaned her head back against his chest anyway. It didn’t take her long to fall asleep. It had been so long since she’d been able to relax.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so glad that you all enjoy this. There just aren't enough fics out there. I would LOVE to read more!

When Conrad woke it was slow and painful. He hurt everywhere. His head was still thudding, but it was dull, his ribs however were a different story, they pulled painfully with each intake of breath. Conrad opened his eyes and glanced around the room. The gray walls with their white accents were not familiar, but that was because he’d never had the chance to see Stevie’s real home. His eyes found the alarm clock and he realized that he still had quite a little while before he needed to be at work. Conrad closed his eyes but couldn’t fall back to sleep. The smell of Stevie was all around him. She had an underlying fruity smell, almost like peaches and mangos and her hair smelled like it always did, coconuts and vanilla. He felt her against him before he saw her. She was sleeping halfway on her stomach and halfway on her side, her head was lying across his stomach her hair splayed over his chest and on the mattress, one of her hands was tucked under her head and the other was draped across him like a blanket, her chest was pressed into his side, her stomach against his hip, and one of her thighs was slung over his. He grinned at her odd sleeping position and slowly tucked a hand behind his head so that he didn’t wake her. She seemed to be completely relaxed and if the night before was any indication, it had been a long time since she’d been able to relax. And if he was honest, he didn’t want to get up. His night with her had been intense and everything he remembered. Conrad felt her move and when he looked down, her head was lifting slowly. She yawned before rolling onto her back and stretching, the small noises that fell from her lips brought a smile to Conrad’s face.

“Good morning.” He said. Stevie rolled back over and tossed her hair over her shoulder, it was a mess of red and Conrad was always captivated by all the different shades of red and how they blended together to make the most beautiful color. He was pulled from his thoughts when Stevie moved her fingers slowly across his stomach and then put her hand beneath her chin, propping her head up to stare at him.

“Morning.” She grinned lazily.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah, did you?” she replied. Conrad nodded and watched her sit up slowly. She slid up next to him, crossing her legs, and tugging the sheets up around her bare chest to Conrad’s disappointment.

“Yes, I did.” He answered. Stevie made a humming noise and reached forward to trail her fingers over his stomach, she paused when she reached his bruised side and a frown marred her happy features.

“This can’t feel good.” She said. Her morning voice made his chest tighten. It was rough and quiet but her original high tone was still there somewhat.

“Tell me about Adam’s death.” He said gently. Trying to pull her attentions from him. Stevie shrugged and she looked down at her fingers. Conrad knew they were approaching territory she didn’t want to talk about, but he needed her to talk to him, if she talked to him, then she could get through what was going on in her heart and mind. He carefully pushed himself up against the headboard, wincing as he went, and then he took her hands in his. His thumbs gently rubbed into her knuckles and he waited. Finally, she looked up at him and sighed.

“He got up early to work out, he usually just ran around the block, but he said he wanted to use the machines. Whatever that means.” Stevie chuckled and stared at their hands.

“Anyway, it was really early, raining, Adam had a green light, a trucker that had been driving all night closed his eyes for two seconds, ran the red light, hit Adam and another man. Adam died on impact, broken neck. The other man is paralyzed from the waist down.” She looked up and shrugged.

“Does it make me a horrible human being to wish it had been the other way around?” she asked. Conrad shook his head and rubbed his thumbs harder into her hands, trying to comfort her.

“How long ago?” he asked carefully.

“Eighteen months.” She said. Her face showed little emotion and Conrad wondered briefly if she was over it, if she had dealt with her emotions and there were none left. Surely that couldn't be true. Adam had been her husband.

“Was he still an asshole?” Conrad asked. Stevie laughed loudly then, a burst of happiness from memories. When the laugh bubbled away, she shrugged a little.

“No more than you are.” She said. It was his turn to laugh.

“You always had a thing for that type.” He shrugged. Stevie smiled and nodded, her eyes filling with gratitude. She slowly pulled one of her hands away and touched his cheek, running the back of her fingers down across his skin. She came to a stop when she ran across the scar along his jaw, it was fairly small, but noticeable to anyone touching his face. She used the tips of her fingers to gently trace it and her eyes showed confusion.

“What’s this from?” Conrad pursed his lips and turned his head into her hand, placing a small kiss against her palm.

“My father.” he said. Stevie’s eyes widened but she was silent, much like he’d been, waiting for him to speak. When it came to speaking about his feelings and his past, similar to most, he wasn’t a fan. But if he expected her to talk to him and be open with him, then he would have to do that same.

“You know he liked to drink. He liked to puff his chest out and act like a big man. He came home one afternoon and started drinking, I was outside, just messing around.” Conrad moved her small fingers around in his hand and he continued.

“Some of the neighborhood kids were riding their bikes around, one of them was a real asshole and he ran into one of the other kids on purpose, knocked him down, started messing with the poor kid in front of everyone. It pissed me off.” He said. Stevie nodded knowingly.

“So, I went over, told him to stop, we got into it, wrestling you know, nothing serious. Dad came out and saw, instead of breaking it up, he came over to watch. He always thought I was weak you know, and I think he thought he could beat it out of me. I pushed the other kid away instead of finishing it and Dad was furious. He drug me in the house, called me a loser, and he hit me, his ring cut me.” Conrad felt Stevie’s fingers gently stroke the scar and her eyes were full of understanding and kindness, no sympathy, she knew he’d hate that.

“I should have beat the other kid’s ass. If I had known he was watching, I would have.” Conrad smirked and shook his head.

“Your father is ill tempered, unreasonable, and perhaps a little insane. He was probably going to hurt you no matter what you did. But, it was kind of you to step in and help the other kid.” Stevie said. Conrad smirked and took her hand from his cheek to press a kiss to her knuckles. His ribs protested the movement, but he hid it well.

“I should have killed the bastard, many times over.” He said. Stevie shook her head and leaned down, dropping small kisses across his chest and shoulder.

“No, he is your dad. He may be a bastard but he is still your father. Killing him would have hurt you more than he ever could.” Stevie shrugged and sat back up. Conrad chuckled as a smile tugged at her lips. She knew he had no intention of actually killing his father, but it was very Stevie to stay the course. She tugged the sheet up and slipped her feet out from under the thin covers. Conrad laid his hand over her ankle and his thumb softly rubbed the knob of bone that stuck out. He discovered two small, white, long scars right above her ankle and he trailed a finger over them.

“Dog bite.” She grinned like a child. Conrad laughed and looked closer at them.

“How on Earth?” he asked, still chuckling at her misfortune.

“Roommate brought home this ugly little dog once, she found it wandering somewhere,” Stevie snorted and pushed the sheet under her arms to keep it up while she held her hands up to show Conrad the size of the dog.

“He was like this big, pretty sure it was a Chihuahua or something small like that. Anyway, he barked non-stop and I was the only one who would actually put him up to keep him quiet so he hated me.” Stevie looked down at Conrad’s hand where he was mindlessly rubbing her ankle and listening to her intently. He found everything she said interesting, especially since she was telling him things she’d probably only shared with Adam.

“I went to let him out one day, and he ran out of the room and did a drive by on my ankle.”

“A drive by?” Conrad chuckled.

“Yes a drive by! He ran by and bit the shit out of me before he took off down the hallway.” Stevie laughed. Conrad was truly entertained by her enthusiastic story telling.

“How does a dog have something against such a delightful human being?” Conrad’s laughing was increasing and Stevie leaned forward and joined his laughing.

“Maybe he had an issue with my assholeness.”

“That’s not a word.” He shook his head.

“No one has ever accused me of being well rounded.”

“I think most people would just assume you are because of the Dr. in front of your name.”

“Never assume.” Stevie moved to get out of bed but Conrad reached out, catching her wrist. He pulled her back against him.

“Don’t go just yet.” He whispered before kissing her. Stevie made a satisfied noise and pushed against him, her chest sliding over his. His feelings for her were resurfacing, they had never really gone, but as he felt his emotions pool, his worry rose. He had just gotten out of a serious relationship, and Stevie was not at all ready to be back in one. Losing himself in her again was not a good idea. If he did, they’d both end up broken, worse off than they already were. She draped her arm over him and ran her nails over his neck and all his rational thoughts swiftly disappeared.

“I need to shower…” she said softly when their lips parted. Conrad groaned when she moved off of the bed, dropping the sheet as she went. She paused at the bathroom door and turned around.

“You’re welcome to join me.” She smiled. Conrad didn’t give it a second thought, he climbed off the bed and followed her quickly into the bathroom.

* * *

 

Conrad watched Stevie out of the corner of his eye. The jeep’s top was off and the wind was whipping some of the loose hair, that had fallen free of it’s knot, around her face. She was tapping her foot and singing loudly to the radio while using one hand to gesture. It was a beautiful day and the sun shining down on the beautiful girl was doing Conrad’s composure no good at all.

“I can’t believe you’re still riding that bike.” She shouted before turning the radio down a bit.

“I can’t believe you’re still listening to NSYNC.”

“Don’t you dare Conrad Hawkins!” she gasped before pulling into the hospital parking garage. Conrad laughed while she spat curse words at him and parked the vehicle.

“Don’t pretend like you weren’t singing to the last one.” She said climbing out of the car and grabbing her duffle from the back. Devon was making his way in when he spotted them, he was already wearing his white coat and Conrad could not help but snicker. Stevie popped his shoulder and he winced as paint flared in his side. He hid it though, he needed to get through work with no issues.

“Be nice, he’s a good kid.”

“I am nice.”

“You’re never nice.” She replied.

“I’m nice to you.” He wiggled his eyebrows.

“Would you please behave for like five seconds?” she hissed right before Devon approached.

“Morning Stephanie.” Devon said brightly. Stevie and Conrad shared a look and then Conrad took a drink of his energy drink.

“That’s one.” Conrad said. Devon gave him a confused look and Stevie just chuckled and shook her head.

“You’re allowed to call her Stephanie three times, then she hits you, right Stephanie?” he asked. Stevie swatted at him but didn’t connect.

“See?” Conrad laughed, dodging her swing.

“He’s kidding Devon. Stephanie or Stevie, whichever you want to call me is fine. I’ll catch up, I left my jacket.” She turned and hurried back to the car while Devon and Conrad walked on.

“So, you rode here together? Carpool? Did she pick you up? Or…did you stay the night?” Devon asked, his eyebrows moving up and down suggestively.

“She picked me up.” Conrad lied easily.

“Her husband doesn’t mind?” Devon asked. Conrad sighed and paused for a moment to face him. His head was still hurting and his ribs were hurting even more.

“Her husband died a while back.”

“He’s dead?”

“That’s what died means.” Conrad said, continuing forward.

“That sucks. How’d it happen?”

“Her story, not mine.” Conrad said as he got a few steps in front of Devon.

“Fair enough. So what is she doing here? Is she a resident?” Devon asked.

“She’s actually the Head of Emergency Medicine.” Conrad glanced back to see Devon’s shocked face. It was rare that someone as young as Stevie was as high ranked as she was, but she had an impressive record in the military and at home.

“Wow, that’s great.” He said. He moved to speak again, but he paused quickly before reaching out and smacking Conrad’s arm. Conrad winced, the hit irritating his ribs. He really wished people would stop hitting him.

“What, jeez?” Conrad frowned.

“Incoming, you might want to stop that interaction.” Devon pointed back toward Stevie who had just grabbed something from her jeep and was walking back toward them. The one thing stopping her was Nic, who was making a B-line for Stevie.

“It’s fine.” Conrad smirked and watched the pair.

“Stevie!” Nic called across the lot, causing Stevie’s head to jerk up.

“What do you mean it’s fine, look at their faces. Are they about to fight? Is Nic going to punch her?” Devon asked, turning his body toward the women just in case he had to break something up. Conrad chuckled and shook his head. While both Nic and Stevie looked serious, Conrad knew the women wouldn’t be fighting. As soon as Nic reached Stevie, they wrapped their arms around one another and hugged. Devon turned around and gaped at Conrad and then back to the pair. He was definitely shocked, but Conrad wasn’t. The women had known each other since Stevie’s return from Afghanistan and Stevie had been the one to introduce Nic to Conrad before she left for New York. They had been friends longer, Nic had dibs on Stevie, which Conrad always seemed to forget.

“It’s their story.” Conrad said in reply to Devon’s bewildered look.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All your beautiful and sweet comments make my heart happy. All my love to all of you.

“I wish you would have called.” Nic said as the pair walked into the hospital. Stevie shrugged and scanned her badge at the door.

“I didn’t even have a funeral Nic, I just took his ashes to the pier he liked to fish on and sent them out.” She said. Nic nodded her understanding and Stevie watched her eyes find Conrad who was walking several feet in front of them.

“Did you two talk?” Nic asked. Stevie nodded and tried to keep her facial expressions to a minimum.

“Was he pissed?” she asked.

“No, just confused.”

“Yeah…feelings tend to do that to him.” She replied. Stevie chuckled and shook her head. She knew Conrad had trouble with his feelings and he had even more difficulty working through them.

“He’ll figure it out one day.” Stevie said. Nic sighed and shook her head.

“How did you get him to do it?” Nic asked as they reached the locker room. Stevie laughed and then gave a big sigh before opening her locker.

“When you’re in a war zone, life is fleeting. I think I was just in the right place and in the right time with him.”

“You think he felt like he might die so he shared with you?” Nic asked, glancing over, the look on her face disbelieving.

“I think that had something to do with it.” Stevie shrugged and pulled her scrubs on as quickly as she could. That had a lot to do with it, but Stevie also knew Conrad had opened up to her because she’d done that with him, she given him the space to do it himself, and she never made him feel like he had to talk. As much as Stevie liked Nic, she knew how much of a problem solver Nic was, she wanted to get in, get dirty, and figure it out. But Conrad didn’t need to be figured out or fixed, he just needed someone to nod and make stupid jokes about his misfortune, that was how he dealt with it.

“Hey, we should do diner one night this week, catch up.” Nic grinned.

“Of course.” Stevie replied. Stevie knew Nic wouldn’t approve of the fact that she had slept with Conrad, and that’s why she’d keep it to herself. The women parted ways with Stevie heading to the ER and Nic heading to the nurse’s station.

* * *

 

The next few hours were uneventful with Stevie running from patient to patient to check, diagnose, and discharge. She wasn’t even all that busy until three bodies came in at the same time. Two with gunshot wounds, one with a head wound. Feldman came around the corner right as the three came in and Stevie pointed to the head wound.

“Take him, I’ve got the female GSW, male is to the leg, nurses will get him stabilized.” She said. Feldman nodded and hurried off while Stevie ducked into the women’s room. The nurses explained what was happening while Stevie checked the wound. It was a through and through to her shoulder. It hadn’t hit anything vital, but Stevie wouldn’t know about broken bones until they got some x-rays.

“Hey there sweetie, can you tell me your name?” Stevie leaned over the woman and frowned. She wasn’t a woman at all, she looked to be about sixteen and her dark hair was striped with various colors. Her wide brown eyes held nothing but fear and Stevie felt her chest tighten in response to the look.

“Holly.” The girl gasped.

“Good, ok, Holly, how about a last name. These nice people are giving you some medicine right now to help with the pain, should be kicking in any minute.” Stevie said. She noticed the young girl’s face relax and she nodded to the nurses cleaning her wound.

“Holly Castor.”

“Alright Holly, does that feel better?”

“Yes.” Holly closed her eyes and turned her head slightly.

“Can you tell me what happened here Holly?” Stevie asked. Holly’s eyes opened wide and shot around the room, panic seemed to overwhelm her and she tried to jerk upward.

“Woah, easy, calm down. I need you to hold still.” Stevie grabbed Holly’s uninjured arm and pressed her back down to the bed.

“I need to get out of here, can I go please?” Holly asked quickly, the panic still present in her voice.

“No Holly, not until we get this arm patched up and make sure nothing is broken. After we get all of this cleaned up and make sure you’re alright, I’ll let you go, I promise.” Stevie said, trying to calm the girl down. Holly swallowed and nodded slowly, still looking around, she was obviously worried about something.

“Hey Holly, can I call anyone? Your mom? A friend?” Stevie asked, as she double checked vitals to make sure she was stable enough to transfer to x-ray.

“No, no.” Holly shook her head rapidly.

“Ok, that’s fine. Let’s get her to x-ray.” Stevie said to the two nurses near the bed. The men nodded and quickly laid the IV bags on the bed before wheeling Holly away. Stevie met Feldman in the hallway and jerked her head toward the head wound.

“Does he know her?” she pointed.

“Nope, says they were all standing outside the convenience store on 9thwhen someone came around the corner and started shooting, he tripped and hit his head on a fire hydrant. He doesn’t know either of them and says they weren’t speaking and didn’t come in together.” Feldman said.

“Police.” Feldman nodded toward the bay doors and interrupted any thoughts Stevie was having.

“Handle that other GSW please.” Stevie said to Feldman. She knew the cops were there for the gun shot wounds, so she headed for them before they could upset any patients.

“We can talk out here.” she pointed to the waiting room and the officers followed behind.

“We need to speak to the victims.” One of the officers said.

“One is going up for an x-ray, one is being examined, the other is getting stitches. When one is available you’re welcome to have your talk, but for now, my female GSW’s name is Holly Castor, she looks to be about sixteen, that’s all I have on her right now. My nurses are trying to find her in the system. She looks scared, so when you do question her, make sure it is gentle.” Stevie said. The men nodded and Stevie went back into the ER.

* * *

 

A few hours later Stevie stepped into her GSW’s room only to find two men standing next to the bed. The men were both wearing colors and Stevie instantly tensed. She looked at Holly who looked utterly terrified, she was sitting up in the bed and her arms were wrapped around her torso, her eyes were staring down at the sheets and she just looked completely lost.

“Gentleman, we only allow one visitor at a time.” Stevie said, trying her best to be cordial. She didn’t want to start anything and she knew the men wouldn’t believe they allowed no visitors at all.

“This is our sister.” The taller, more muscled one spoke first. Stevie frowned and glanced at Holly, she didn’t want to ask her and put her in any more danger than she was already in. If these men had been part of the shooting earlier, and they were trying to keep Holly quiet, then they’d do just about anything to accomplish that goal.

“Really, well it is nice to meet you both, but that doesn’t change our policy. One at a time.” Stevie smiled at the men, giving her best fake grin. They shared a look and then the bigger one nodded, telling the other to leave. The man stepped out of the room and Stevie pretended to check some things while she watched, making sure the man left.

“Alright, let’s look at this shoulder?” Stevie stepped around the bed and peered down at Holly’s patched wound. She had seen it earlier, but she was trying to figure out a way to get Holly out of the room without the man following.

“How does it feel?” Stevie asked.

“It feels great. When do you think I’ll be able to leave?” she asked. Stevie glanced over her shoulder and saw that the man was nodding, as if he were coaching Holly.

“If I’m being honest Holly, I don’t know, I need to observe it for a few more days, make sure no infection sets in.” Stevie said.

“Is that really necessary?” The man asked.

“Yes, if it gets infected, she could lose the arm.” Stevie lied easily and smiled back at the man again. He narrowed his eyes and jerked his head.

“What’s your name?” he asked. Confidence surged through Stevie, she’d faced worse men than him in Afghanistan, she wasn’t scared of him.

“Stephanie Holt.” She replied and quickly pressed the call button on Holly’s bed before she grabbed Holly’s file and flipped through it quickly.

“They didn’t do a CT scan did they, god, what am I going to do with these people.” Stevie gave a fake chuckle.

“Yes?” Came a woman’s voice over the speaker.

“Hey Kay, I need a wheelchair in here, and will you call up to CT and tell them I’m bringing a patient up for a scan.”

“Yes ma’am.” Kay replied.

“Do we need another scan?” Holly asked.

“Yep, it shows me if anything is torn up in there. I have to make sure everything is intact.” Stevie grinned. The man crossed his arms and frowned.

“It’s alright Holly, I’ll walk up with you.” He said.

“Actually, you can’t. Visitors aren’t allowed in that area, you’ll need to wait in the lobby until we bring her back down.” Stevie said. The man looked uncomfortable, but Stevie knew he wasn’t going to argue with her in a hospital full of people.

“It won’t take long.” Stevie reassured them as the wheelchair came into the room. The man just nodded and watched Stevie wheel Holly away before he was ushered to the lobby. Stevie didn’t know what to do, her heart was pounding. She pushed Holly quickly through the double doors and into an elevator.

“So, your brother seems nice.” Stevie said.

“He’s not my brother.” Holly whispered.

“Yeah, I kind of picked up on that.”

“There’s no scan is there?” Holly asked.

“Smart girl.”

“If I’m gone too long, he’ll come looking, he doesn’t care about the rules here.” Holly huffed out a desperate laugh and Stevie hit the stop button on the elevator. She came around and kneeled in front of Holly. The girl looked lost and broken.

“Listen to me, you say the word and I’ll hide you in the hospital. He won’t be able to find you. I’ll bring the police to you, you tell them everything you know and you won’t have to worry about those guys.” Stevie said. Holly rolled her eyes and shook her head.

“You’re delusional. As soon as the cops come after them, they’ll know I talked and they’ll come after me.” Holly said. Stevie frowned, as much as she hated to admit it, Holly was right. Something about the girl’s eyes were just pulling Stevie to help. Holly was terrified, and Stevie was worried that if the girl got away from her, the next time she saw Holly, she’d be dead.

“What if I do it?” Stevie said rapidly before she could stop herself. Holly’s eyebrows wrinkled and Stevie put her hand on Holly’s knee.

“If I go down there and confront him, I’ll tell him that I looked at your file and you don’t have any brothers, I’ll tell him I’ve called the police. They’ll both leave. Then, you can speak to the police, tell them what happened.” Stevie said. Holly shook her head quickly.

“They’ll come after you.” Holly said.

“I’ve been shot at in Afghanistan, these boys don’t scare me.” Stevie pointed.

“Where will I go?” Holly asked. Stevie saw that Holly’s eyes were starting to shine with something, maybe it was hope, even if it was only a very small bit.

“Maybe back home? Where do you live?” Stevie asked gently. Holly shook her head again and Stevie could see a few tears gather in the young girl’s eyes.

“No, not home.” Holly said softly. Stevie squeezed her knee and nodded.

“It’s alright, we’ll figure it out. Let’s just get you safe first.” Stevie pressed the stop button again and the elevator continued up. They exited in front of the nurse’s station and Stevie wheeled Holly quickly down the hall. She pushed open one of the call room doors and pulled Holly inside.

“Ok, stay here for a few minutes. I’ll be right back.” Stevie said.

“Where are you going?” Holly asked quickly.

“To find some help.” Stevie smiled and ducked out of the room. She hurried back down the hallway and spotted Devon.

“Hey Stephanie.” He said as she approached.

“Where is he?” she asked. Devon smirked and jerked his head.

“Room 506.” He said. Stevie patted Devon’s arm as a thank you and she ran off. When she turned the corner, Conrad was in the hallway next to the room, he looked beaten down, he was leaning back against the wall and his eyes were closed. Stevie frowned and took a step forward, but as soon as she did, Jude stepped out of the room followed by Dr. Lane. Conrad was off the wall suddenly and he stepped toward Jude.

“This is bullshit and you know it.” Conrad said. Lane just shook her head and walked off in the opposite direction.

“Not now Conrad.” Jude pointed.

“You’re going to kill her!” Conrad nearly shouted, stepping even closer. Jude pushed Conrad back, he didn’t shove him, but it was enough to make him angry. As soon as Stevie saw Conrad’s fists clench, she leapt forward, her hand wrapped around Conrad’s bicep and she pushed herself in front of him.

“Hey, hey, that’s enough.” She said softly as to not alert anyone.

“Stephanie.” Jude said in disbelief, he must not have known she was here. It didn’t matter though, Stevie had other issues she needed to handle. Conrad’s harsh gaze fell to hers and she saw that his breathing was coming in puffs, he was really angry.

“I need your help right now.” She said gently.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter did not have much Conrad and Stevie, but I wanted to show you all a little bit of Stevie's personality and what type of person she is, I hope you all liked it, and I promise more Stevie/Conrad next time.


	6. Chapter 6

“Can it wait?” Conrad asked, glaring at Jude over Stevie’s head and trying to pull his arm away. Stevie held tight and shook her head firmly.

“No, no it cannot.” She said, trying to get him to meet her eyes. Finally, he looked down at her and sighed, his body loosened a bit and he shot one last look at Jude.

“This isn’t over.” He said before Stevie pulled him away and into one of the call rooms. She let him go to close the door and when she turned back, he was gripping one of the rails of the bed, rubbing the palm of his hand into his temple. He looked horrible, which made Stevie briefly forget her own problems as concern for him bloomed in her chest.

“Are you alright?” she asked, stepping toward him.

“I’m fine, what do you need?” he asked. Stevie watched him closely for a few seconds before he turned his head toward her and frowned.

“I’ve got a young girl, she was shot this morning, I think it had something to do with a gang she’s managed to get herself wrapped up in. Two of the members where in her room intimidating her when I got back to her, I pulled her out.”

“Now you want to hide her?” Conrad asked, letting go of the bed rail to stand up straight. He was paler than usual, and that meant pain. Stevie crossed her arms, battling between asking for his help and asking him to lie down.

“Yeah I do. I just don’t know where.” She stepped toward him and spotted the small beads of sweat dusting his brow.

“Bring her to Nic’s floor, she’s got some beds up there, she’ll take care of her.” Conrad said nodding. Stevie nodded and looked him up and down carefully.

“Stop looking at me like that.” He said, closing his eyes and turning away from her.

“Like what?” she asked, catching his wrist as he turned.

“Like you’re afraid I’m about to fall over.” He paused and looked down at her hand.

“I wouldn’t look at you like that if you didn’t look like death warmed over. Come on, sit down for a few seconds.”

“No time.” Conrad shook his head and looked back at her. Stevie raised an eyebrow and put her hand firmly on his shoulder and pressed.

“Everyone has thirty seconds.” She said. Conrad went down with little resistance, so quickly that it made Stevie’s panic shoot upward. He closed his eyes and grimaced, his breath coming out in a quick pant.

“You’re not fine.” Stevie kneeled in front of him, putting her hands on his knees to prop herself up. Conrad didn’t meet her eyes, instead he closed his and dropped his head between his shoulder for a moment.

“Hey,” Stevie lifted her hand and put it on the back of his neck, gripping him hard, grounding him, “talk to me.” She said.

“One of my patients, she’s really important to me, she’s got cancer. Something is wrong with her treatment.” Conrad shook his head and Stevie slid her hand down to rub along his neck. She missed this, she missed comforting someone, helping someone she cared deeply for, walk through their problems.

“Lane is her doctor?” Stevie asked. Conrad nodded and opened his eyes, peering at her.

“She wants to do a dangerous surgery. Jude offered to do it even though he knows how I feel.” Conrad grumbled and pulled back out of her hand, his anger resurfacing. Stevie didn’t miss the way he was favoring his side, not leaning that way at all.

“How are you feeling, other than angry?” she asked. Conrad glanced at her and shrugged.

“I feel great. I need to get back to work, and you have a patient to hide.” Conrad stood up quickly, and then leaned heavily to one side rapidly. He reached out and caught himself right as Stevie wrapped her hands around his bicep, catching him as well.

“Conrad.” She said gently.

“It just my ribs. I swear.” He flashed her his classic grin, the one that let him get away with almost anything, but Stevie wasn’t buying it.

“This reminds me of the time you tried to leave med with a bullet wound in your arm.”

“It was a scratch.” He corrected.

“A deep one that required stitches.” Stevie narrowed her eyes and held tight to his arm.

“Are you saying you’re going to handcuff me to the bed like you did that time?”

“If I have to. Be honest with me” She responded.

“It hurts like hell, pain comes and goes in waves, like all broken ribs. Pain makes me a little light headed, only when I move a certain way. After this shift I have three days off, I’ll rest then.” He said. Stevie wanted to suggest pain medicine, but she knew he couldn’t, not while he was on shift, so she nodded, honesty was all she could ask for, at least she knew what she was dealing with now.

“Ok, just promise me you won’t overdo it?”

“If you promise not to get into a fight with the bangers downstairs.” Conrad replied. Stevie chuckled and let go of his arm.

“Yes sir.” She put her hand on his cheek and gave him and quick peck on the lips before she ducked out of the room. 

* * *

 

It had been a few hours since Conrad had seen Stevie, he had a short break so he made his way down to the ER. His ribs were killing him and starting to make his breathing difficult. Every single movement hurt and he knew that restricting his breathing to keep the pain at bay was not a god plan, but he only had two hours left, and then he could lay in his bed and not move for three days. Conrad stepped off the elevator and spotted Devon who was working in the ER for the last part of the shift, like Conrad had asked him to do.

“Have you seen Stevie?” Conrad asked him. Devon nodded and pointed toward the waiting room.

“Last I saw, some guy came in looking for her, she stepped out to speak to him.” Devon shrugged and gave Conrad an interested look but didn’t press it.

“How long ago?” Conrad asked.

“Ten minutes give or take.” Devon replied and moved on to check his next patient. Conrad frowned and walked toward the waiting room. He knew Stevie had a few friends in Atlanta, but no one that would come and pull her away from work. Conrad walked out into the waiting room and glanced around, he didn't see her at all, so he turned to the receptionist.

“Have you seen Dr. Holt? Short, bright red hair.” He gestured.

“Out front.” The receptionist pointed. Conrad nodded his thanks and walked toward the front door. When he stepped out, it only took him a moment to locate her. He could spot her hair anywhere. She was standing in the emergency parking lot next to a blue mustang and she looked agitated. The man in front of her was taller by a foot, his dark hair hung down to his shoulders, and Conrad could see the tattoos that trailed down his arms but couldn’t make them out. The man was pointing, his finger wagging in Stevie’s face and he was talking quickly, as if he were scolding her for something. Conrad’s brow furrowed and he took a few steps forward. The man pointed his finger again and Stevie jerked backward, her arms crossing over her chest defensively. Conrad didn’t like it, not at all. The man stepped toward her and Conrad found himself moving across the parking lot. He knew Stevie could handle herself, he’d seen it first hand, but for some reason, she didn’t look like she was going to defend herself if this man took a swing at her. Conrad paused when the man turned and opened his car door, if the problem was over, he would wait and just ask Stevie, but the man stopped, one foot inside his vehicle and he turned a little, pointing again, Conrad was close enough to hear now.

“He’s not playing any more Steph.” The man said. Stevie nodded and raised a defiant eyebrow, which obviously didn’t go over well because the man’s hand shot out and he grabbed her face in his meaty palm. He jerked her forward and Conrad felt his anger skyrocket.

“This is not a fucking game!” the man shouted in her face.

“Hey! Get your hands off her!” Conrad shouted. The intake of breath required for his shout caused his ribs to scream and as soon as the words left his mouth, his energy plummeted, but he stayed on his feet, barely. It worked though, the man let her go, pushing her backward as he did, and he slid into his car, roaring away before Conrad could make it to them. Stevie was rubbing her jaw when Conrad reached her and she shook her head before he could even speak.

“Stay out of it, please.” She said, her bright eyes met his and he could see how serious she was. But she should have known better, there was no way he was staying out of it.

“Someone just assaulted you in the parking lot and you want me to stay out of it? Walk away with no questions huh?” he asked, his anger from earlier piling on with his current anger.

“He didn’t assault me, I’m fine. And yes, I want you to leave it alone. I can handle myself.” Her hand dropped from her jaw and she walked around him, back toward the hospital. Conrad reached out and grabbed her arm, but Stevie ripped away.

“Stop it!” she shouted and for the first time in a very long time, Conrad saw fear in her eyes.

“Stephanie.” Conrad said softly, trying to calm her down. He could see how quickly her chest was rising and falling, he could see how upset she was. Something serious was going on, and he was going to find out.

“I don’t need you to take care of me. I can handle it myself.” She waved a hand frantically.

“No, it doesn’t look like you can.” He said gently. He’d dealt with a frantic Stevie before, he knew how to talk to her, and when he reached out to catch her waving hand, she slapped his hands away and pointed at him.

“You are not my father and you are not my husband. Back off!” she spun on her heel and walked away, leaving a stunned Conrad in her wake. Stevie had never been one to get overly emotional and Conrad was shocked by her outburst. He needed to know what was happening, what she was going through. But before he could follow her, his pager went off, and with a sigh, he hurried back inside.

* * *

 

Stevie tossed her duffle bag on the table in her kitchen and fell onto the couch. She felt terrible, not only was she exhausted, but she felt like a complete piece of shit. She had pushed Conrad away and she’d done it out of fear. When she’d woken up next to him, and they’d talked, she saw in his eyes that he was opening up to her again, he was letting her back in. He had always trusted her more than he needed to, but everyone needed someone, and she was his someone. Stevie knew that, and she took advantage of it.

Stevie stood up and walked quickly into her bedroom where she opened her closet and grabbed the box from the top shelf. She tossed it onto her bed and pushed the top off. Stevie loved Adam, they had problems, he hurt her, but she loved him. Conrad though…Stevie paused and lifted a photo from the box and stared down at herself. She was wearing fatigues, standing next to Conrad whose arm was slung around her and he was pressing a kiss to her cheek, Stevie was smiling, smiling bigger than she’d ever smiled before. God, he made her so happy back then. Why had everything gone to shit? Stevie shook her head and closed the box.

She needed to apologize to Conrad for yelling at him. He had just been trying to help, which was what he always did. He didn’t believe in letting someone suffer alone. The thought made Stevie grind her teeth. She was letting him suffer alone. He was probably on his way home right now, riding that stupid ass bike because in her anger she had left him. He was too proud to call a cab and riding the bike would kill his ribs. Stevie knew when he got home he wouldn’t rest either, he would probably fumble around with his bike, look at patient files, and then he’d do something else, anything to keep his mind and hands busy. Stevie sighed, she couldn’t let him do that, she’d force him to rest if need be. She grabbed her duffle and emptied the contents on her bed before she stuffed a few t-shirts and shorts in the bag, she tossed her toothbrush in to, and headed out.

* * *

 

It didn’t take her long to get to Conrad’s apartment and as she suspected, he hadn’t arrived yet. She tossed her duffle onto the ground by his door and sat down. Stevie looked down at her fingernails, she kept them short, always had. Long nails made for complications in the medical field. A memory flashed through her head, a memory of Conrad holding her hair as she tossed her cookies in the bathroom of some sketch bar, he’d made a comment about how the pink nail polish she was wearing was chipped. Stevie vaguely recalled snorting in amusement and then her eyes had filled with tears, suddenly sad that her polish was chipped. Conrad had shushed her, running his fingers through her hair and whispering gentle promises to help her repaint the chipped nails. Stevie chuckled at the memory. She tried to remember if he had actually repainted her nails, but the thought was interrupted by the elevator doors opening with a ding. A bike rolled out followed by a pale and sweaty Conrad. He was gripping the bike for dear life and stumbling along next to it. Stevie knew that it was the only thing keeping him upright. She leapt off the floor, her heart racing with worry.

“Conrad.” She said, reaching out to him. His head shot up and his confused gaze met hers. He frowned and looked her up and down.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, his voice tight with pain.

“Well I had a sinking suspicion that you wouldn’t be doing much resting unless someone was around to make you.” She said. He glanced down at her bag and narrowed his eyes.

“So you’re going to stay and make me rest?” he asked.

“I guess that depends on whether or not you want me to.” She shrugged. She knew he was probably still a little hurt at their earlier confrontation, but she didn’t believe for a second he would turn her away. He pursed his lips and Stevie glanced down at his hands, seeing the white knuckled grip he had on the handle bars of the bike.

“Come on, lets get you inside.” She slipped her hand into his coat pocket and snagged his keys, ignoring his mumble of protest. Stevie unlocked his door and pushed it open.

“Where does the bike go?” she asked.

“I’ve got it.” He said sullenly. Stevie waved him forward, not wanting to push him right off the bat. He pushed the bike through the door and leaned it against the wall before flipping the lights on. Stevie grabbed her bag and followed him inside, making sure to lock the door behind her. Conrad was already at the bed, and his feet could no longer hold him because he dropped onto the bed with a small moan of pain. Stevie dropped her duffle and suddenly recalled all the times they had taken care of each other. All the times she'd forced him to rest in order to heal, all the times he'd held her while she contemplated a bad call or a surgery gone wrong. With a small sigh, she walked into the bedroom area and sat down at the foot of the bed. Conrad was laying back against the pillows, watching her through partially open lids. She grabbed his foot and carefully began to pull the boot off.

"Stop." Conrad moved to pull his foot back although it was very unenthusiastic.  

“I’ve got it.” Stevie said softly and held tight. She pulled the first boot off followed by his sock and dropped them to the floor before she did the same to the second. 

"I can take my own clothes off." he said sullenly. Stevie bit down on the mean comment she wanted to make about him acting like a child. She deserved his sullen responses, she had acted like a child first.

"I know, but I want to help." she sat up on her knees and reached for his belt buckle, but his hands stopped her.

"Stephanie." he said quietly. He only called her by her full name when he was serious and it always made her uneasy. She lifted her hands and let him unbuckle his pants and slide them off before he quickly shed his shirt. He tried not to make a face, but Stevie could see the winces and hear the small grunts that came along with his movements. He sat back in just his boxers and Stevie ran her eyes along the deep purple bruises on his side. It looked incredibly painful.

"Is your medicine still in the same place?" she asked as she stood.

"Yeah." he called. Stevie retrieved some pain meds and water before returning them to him and dropping them into his open palm. He took them without argument.

"Wow, that's a first, you usually battle me on medicine." she reclaimed her seat next to his feet.

"Only when I don't need it." he smirked. His grin made her happy, it meant he was coming around.

"Right." Stevie rolled her eyes before she gently took his feet and sat them in her lap. Conrad eyed her warily until she lifted one of his feet and began roughly rubbing circles into his instep. 

"Interesting." Conrad said while watching her. He didn't pull away so Stevie smiled and continued to rub.

"What?" she asked.

"The last time you rubbed my feet, we went to sleep and when I woke up your were gone." he said. Stevie winced at his words, she hadn't even thought of that.

"Conrad."

"Sorry, I shouldn't have said that." he said quickly. Stevie rubbed her thumb into the pad of his foot and pursed her lips. 

"No, you have every right to still be angry. What I did was fucked up. I don't expect you to forgive me." she said, meeting his eyes.

"I do forgive you though, I forgave you the moment it happened. I knew why, that's on me." he said. Stevie frowned, but nodded.

"Can we talk about something that maybe isn't so serious?" she asked. Conrad grinned, but she could see through it, he was fine, but he wasn't going to forget what happened, he would want answers soon, and he deserved them, but for now, Stevie just wanted to forget her problems. 

"Like what?" he asked as she pressed into his toes.

"Tell me about that time you had to work with Private Henry in the med bay." Stevie smirked. Conrad chuckled, a beautiful sound, and she knew they would be fine for the night.

**Author's Note:**

> This has in no way been edited, so there are probably lots of mistakes and inaccuracies. I just needed to get it out there. Hope you all liked it.
> 
> Let me know how you guys feel! All my love!


End file.
